The incumbent will be assigned to the Mental Health and Behavioral Medicine (MH&BM) Service in Waco, Texas. The psychiatrist for this position is assigned to the combined Community Living Center (CLC) within the Mental Health and Behavioral Medicine (MHBM) Service. Provider will support in part a new 11 bed, all private rooms code alert neighborhood, located at the Doris Miller VAMC, in building 91. This inpatient CLC neighborhood provides comprehensive care to residents with chronic aggressive behavior, and mental health conditions. Care of these residents is provided and managed by an integrated, interdisciplinary team that consists of a geriatrician, psychiatrist, psychologist, nursing, social worker, recreation therapist, pharmacy and a psychologist. The team uses a collaborative behavioral and HATCH model approach to providing nursing home care in developing a comprehensive and individualized treatment plan that includes behavioral management protocols, promotes resident- centered care that supports quality of life and quality of care consistent with long term care standards with a focus on preserving veteran's rights, dignity and self-image. This position requires the incumbent to able to demonstrate competency in therapeutic communication.

Duties include but are not limited to:

The incumbent will be the attending psychiatrist for the 11 bed unit, and will make clinical determinations of appropriate level of care for Veterans across MH&BM and GEC programs, taking into account factors including cognitive presentation and dementia, physical frailty, or need for restraints in consultation with MH&BM site chief, supervisory psychiatrist, and Chief of GEC. The incumbent will provide psychiatric services to patients seeking treatment; will possess the knowledge of biological and psychological theories of mental health and mental illness; psychotherapeutic modalities, substance abuse disorders and dual diagnosis; care of high risk populations; use of community milieu as a therapeutic modality; family dynamics and their role in mental illness and health; psychopharmacology; legal and other factors such as documentation.

Will possess the following necessary skills: completion of a biopsychosocial assessment, interdisciplinary team collaboration; coordination of care across systems; use of evolving new psychiatric diagnostic classification systems and their identified role; therapeutic communication with patients, family, and others involved with care of the patient. She or he will incorporate acceptable, established customer service standards into practice. S/he will communicate with staff in daily morning huddles and as needed to ensure a positive customer experience. Incumbent will also perform teaching activities and supervision of fellows, residents, and medical students. The incumbent will report to the Chief of Mental Health in Waco and will be under the supervision of the Waco Supervisory Psychiatrist. The incumbent will maintain an academic appointment with the Texas A&M College of Medicine Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science. Research opportunities are available and encouraged. Interest and expertise in management of psychiatric emergencies such as acutely suicidal patients as well as chronic serious mental illnesses is preferred including the provision of pharmacotherapy.

IF PATIENT NEEDS ARISE, THE INCUMBENT OF THE ABOVE POSITION MAY BE REASSIGNED WITHIN THE CENTRAL TEXAS VETERANS HEALTH CARE SYSTEM.

Basic Requirements:

*Must be US Citizen (Noncitizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizensin accordance with Department of Veterans Affairs policy.

*Must be proficient in written and spoken English.

*Must have a degree of doctor of medicine or an equivalent degree resulting from a course of education in medicine or osteopathic medicine. The degree must have been obtained fromaninstitution whose accreditation was in place for the year in which the course of study was completed. Approved schools are:

(1) Schools of medicine accredited by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) for the year in which the degree was granted, or (2) Schools of osteopathic medicine approved by the Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation (COCA) of the American Osteopathic Association for the year in which the degree was granted.(3) For foreign medical graduates not covered in (1) or (2) above, facility officials must verifywith the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) that the applicant has met requirements for certification, and must obtain a copyoftheECFMG certificate, if claimed by the applicant.

*Must possess a current, full and unrestricted license to practice medicine or surgery in a State, Territory, or Commonwealth of the United States, or in the District of Columbia

*Must have completed a residency training or its equivalent, approved by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in an accredited core specialty training program leading to eligibility for board certification.(NOTE: VA Physicians involved in academic training programs may be required to be board certified for faculty status.)

Preferred Experience: Board certification in Psychiatry and Neurology (ABPN). Interest and expertise in management of psychiatric emergencies and provision of both pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy.

Staff Physician: None beyond the basic requirements. The individual must qualify to perform duties as a physician, have completed an accredited residency and/or possess experience which has qualified the individual to perform general duties and some specialized functions and procedures without supervision. Staff physicians may also include attendings who train physician residents assigned in facilities with residency training programs, and consultants who are capable of giving authoritative views and opinions on subjects in their field of medicine.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Reference: VA Regulations, specifically VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Appendix G-2 Physician Qualification Standard.This can be found in the local Human Resources Office.

Physical Requirements: Moderate Lifting, 15-44 lbs; Light Lifting, under 15 lbs; Use of fingers; New vision correctable at 13" to 16" to Jaeger 1 to 4; Far vision correctable in one eye to 20/20 and to 20/40 in the other; Ability to distinguish basic colors; Hearing (aid permitted).All applicants are required to submit the following supporting document type(s):*Resume

Applicants may also submit the following supporting document type(s),which may not be required for all applicants:

Please use this checklist to ensure you have included other documents required for your application, such as a copy of your transcript (if using education to qualify), documentation to support Veterans Preference claims, or ICTAP/CTAP documentation (for displaced Federal employees). You will not be contacted for additional information.

Veterans' Preference: When applying for Federal Jobs, eligible Veterans should claim preference on the Occupational Questionnaire in the section provided and provide a legible copy of your DD214(s) and/or documentation related to your active duty service which shows dates of service, character of service (honorable, general, etc.), or dates of impending separation. Additionally, disabled veterans and others eligible for 10-point preference (such as widows or mothers of eligible Veterans) must also submit an SF-15 "Application for 10 Point Veterans Preference" with required proof as stated on the form. For more information, please visit http://www.fedshirevets.gov/job/vetpref/index.aspx.

Faxing Applications or Supporting Documents: You are encouraged to apply online. Applying online will allow you to review and track the status of your application. If you are unable to apply online or unable to upload your supporting documents to your online application, follow the directions located at the following site: Fax Options. The Vacancy ID of the job opportunity announcement is 1988778.

NOTE: If you applied online and your application is complete, do not fax the paper application (1203-FX) as this will overwrite your prior online responses and may result in you being found ineligible.